4 August 2013

We got the groceries you got the cake

Hello it's Sherlock because I've got pictures from visiting the butterflies and I wanted to post them so here they are. Lestrade sent me that title he said it was about butterflies but I think it's about cake. They were at the Natural History Museum and so if you're in London you should go and see them too before the winter comes. When you go in it's hot and there are butterflies everywhere and you have to be careful not to tread on one. You also can't touch them but they land on you and that's okay. There's a mirror at the end, and if you don't have any friends you have to look in it all over you in case you have a stowaway because if it went with you outside into London it might die because there wouldn't be any others like it and it might be cold or not find anything to eat. So you have to be careful.

It was great and you should definitely go. and now John says I have to put a cut in here but definitely LOOK AT THE PICTURES BY CLICKING because they're good.

I like this one because the pattern on its wings fades away near its body and it looks like a drawing not a real thing. Like something from Batman maybe or something like that.

I like the shape of this one with the extra bits of wings.

This one was REALLY BIG but so big it couldn't land on these flowers because they bent over and it would fall off so it was always flapping and hard to take a photo of and it had really really long legs.

This one is my favourite because it's got lots of patterns on it's wings and shiny blue and I liked it.

These are hundreds of chrysalis and they hang them up so they can hatch and some just had and were drying their wings and were still all crumpled up but once they started flying the people would let them out into the plants. I wish I had a whole room full of butterflies to hatch there were moths too and some really really big ones but I prefer butterflies because of the colours. There were all colours and shapes of chrysalis and so different butterflies would come out.

Here are some just drying out:

I like this one because you could see its mouth really well and its eyes.

This one had just hatched in the morning and they didn't even know what sort it was yet because it was just drying out on this fence and they said they would look it up later.

These ones are really big you can see how big compared to the banana and they liked rotting fruit and although their wings are all browny on the underside they had this nice soft blue sort of colour inside.

In a minute we're going to see Lestrade for cake if he's not busy and John says he has errands to do and Mycroft wants new shoes which is the most boring thing ever but he says he'll go and get them in the week if I don't want to go and I don't want to.

104 comments:

Anonymous
said...

Those are lovely pictures, Sherlock. Do you know if the caterpillars cocooned themselves in lines like that, or did the staff somehow unstick them from where they were and transfer them to the wooden bars?

No I think the people did it because some of them were on hooks and Lestrade and John cut some of mine off the leaves that were nearly dead and then glued them onto a piece of wood too because otherwise they would have been on the bottom of my jar and maybe that wouldn't have been good because I think they should hang.

Those pictures are wonderful, Sherlock! Such colors and patterns--beautiful. And I had no idea that there were butterflies that big! Did you ask the staff there lots of questions, and did you learn lots?

REReader there were Attacus Atlas butterflies too and they were bigger than small birds but they were all up in the roof or far away and hard to take a picture of but they were really really big. The staff there didn't know lots but I don't mind taking pictures and then finding out about them I just liked seeing all the different ones.

Your butterfly exhibit has completely different butterflies than the one I went to; the rest of it is the same though, even the big mirror that you have to turn around in to be sure none get out. You described it very well; I remembered how much fun it was the time I went. It was hard to pick a favorite! (And rotten fruit; I once saw butterflies eating off something much nastier than that)

Did you look up what the extra sticky-out bit on the wings is called? Does it even have a name?

No but those are called swallowtails I think only swallowtails have those bits on their wings but I'm still looking so maybe some others do too. Not all swallowtails have them, I think they called them that and then found out other butterflies were the same sort but without the bit on the wing but then they'd already called them it so it was too late.

They're the same family as the BIGGEST ones in the world and they can be 12.5 inches across which is MASSIVE I wish I had one.

I think we have at least ten years before we need worry about him actually doing that...for which I'm sure the degus are grateful. ( And if he's not interested in caterpillars next year, I'm pretty sure I will be.)

There was a boy in the States, about 15 yrs ago now, who wanted to solve the worlds energy problems and attempted to build a nuclear reactor in his backyard. He was 17. I don't think they filed charges against him because he didn't blow anything up (this was pre-9/11), but he has also exceeded his lifetime allotment of radiation exposure.

So be careful, Sherlock, and think things through before you try them.

Papua New Guinea. And the very first one they ever caught they shot with a shotgun the internet says. but they would be better if they were really bright colours but I know that maybe then things would eat them more.

Lestrade is pretending a knife is a guitar and Mycroft is shaking his head.

Mycroft - every cook needs to develop their own style; mine doesn't involve singing, dancing or air guitar, but does tend to involve muttering and swearing to myself. I imagine your cooking style has a little more decorum :-)

Sherlock - those are lovely photos, thank you for sharing them with us.

Hi Sherlock, those butterflies look wonderful - I can see why you chose that one as your favourite, it has a marvellous pattern on its wings. I assume it would have provided an excellent camouflage in its natural habitat.

I couldn't comment yesterday as the pictures didn't show on my phone. I had gone to a whole day outside performance of Henry VI (over 6 hours in 3 parts). Having managed to be in London for the hottest day I was rained on for 2 hours and then blown about for the rest - typical.

Those pictures are lovely, Sherlock. My son who's almost your age asked to go back to the butterfly house here - but it was too late, they'd released them all for the year and changed the exhibit. Even so, we don't have ones quite as large as the ones you describe!

But even though we didn't do butterflies this year we did go see the Lorikeets - like little colorful parrots - and you go inside the big enclosure and buy little cups of nectar to hold out and feed them. Sometimes they'll climb up your arm or sit on your head - and if you're not quick with the nectar they might nip your ear! It was fun and noisy and a wee bit unnerving, but lots of fun. Perhaps a zoo there has something similar?

Sigh. But that's all over now, at least during the week. School started today. New school and new routines and new people. It's a bit of life-rattler for all of us!

This morning I was late, going to grab breakfast at the Yard, got dragged straight into handover from the nightshift, then to court, then back to another meeting, then out on a job...no pause inbetween!

One thing having kids in your life is good for is making sure you eat :-) I often forget breakfast on days the kids go to breakfast club and I can get far too far into the day before eating if I'm on my own but I always remember to eat when I'm making food for the kids.

Maybe prepacking your breakfast would help? or some of those breakfast bars in your desk or something? or I'll shut up and remember you're a big boy ;-)

You mean being shouted at by a Polish commentator isn't romantic enough? Jeeez... going to have to change my plans for the wedding night...

AnonyBob - I do usually have all those things! Weird little bars with fruity middles and all sorts. But today was a perfect storm of running out of everything except quite a lot of black coffee. And then having to cling to the steering wheel of the car before I fell out.

I always manage to get distracted by emails or phone calls or something, and quite often forget to get lunch until all that's left in the shops is crisps and chocolate :-/ Honestly, to look at me, you'd think I forget to breathe more often than I forget to eat...

John - I dunno, the offer to snuggle up in bed with your honey sounds pretty romantic to me, even if it is just so he can watch speedway :-p